It has been a long time coming, but finally last week Microsoft
sent me the gold code for the first Midtown Madness title for the Xbox, and
I am glad to say it has been worth the wait, at least for those of us who were
already fans of the series.

Wide-open racing in two living, breathing
cities: Enjoy highly detailed, fully researched renditions of Paris and Washington,
D.C.—complete with ambient traffic and animated pedestrians. Encounter hidden
routes, shortcuts, and hideouts that showcase the incredible depth of these
two city environments.

Career mode: Work through more than 50
missions across 14 careers, including a limousine driver, pizza deliverer,
taxi driver, secret agent, and police officer. Unlock new careers, vehicles,
and challenges, and progress through the game by completing a series of missions.

Diverse vehicles: Put your driving skills
to the test with a wide assortment of fast and fun vehicles. Select from more
than 30 vehicles, including licensed cars from top manufacturers and vehicles
such as city buses or taxis

Online play: Challenge friends and others
with online play and downloadable content. (Online play details to be disclosed
at a later date).

Advanced graphics and audio: In leveraging
the audio capabilities of Xbox, Midtown Madness 3 delivers traffic, pedestrian,
voice-over, and ambient sound effects—particular to the cities and neighborhoods
in which play takes place—providing a fully interactive racing experience.

Gameplay

Review Quotes

"There
are a few negatives graphically though, there is no widescreen mode, which
is a real disappointment to me, there are also a LOT of jaggies on the screen
when racing around. One plus again though is that the draw-in distance is
far better than Wreckless ever was."

You get to start undercover at the beginning as a cop, taking
roles (Depending on which city you go with, Paris or Washington) as Delivery
Guy, Taxi Driver, Chauffeur, Security Guard, Paramedic, Police Officer and Special
agent when you go with the Paris side of the game...you start off with a choice
of five cars. If you go with Washington then you have other types of levels
such as pizza delivery, very similar to what happens in the Paris level, but
just set in a different area, with different maps and more people to dodge.

The undercover mode is the main part of the single player
game, it is where you unlock more vehicles, do varying things in the game, get
around the whole map and generally get a good feel for the game.

There are lots of different styles again for those of you
who don’t want to play through the main part of the game (although I recommend
that you do). In the single race modes you can choose from Cruise, which is
just driving around the city you choose to race in. Then you have Blitz, which
is a race against time against other drivers, and finally checkpoint, which
is the one I seem to prefer playing.

The gameplay is very similar to before, but a lot faster,
and with more Stuff to smash into. The closest other game on the Xbox that I
can compare it to is Wreckless, the only difference is that Wreckless sucked
and MM3 works really, really well in what it does, where as Wreckless didn't.
The other great thing about MM3 is that is can actually make you laugh, and
the bonus video the game comes with (on the DVD-ROM) is also really well written
and acted, and is very funny to watch. It is well worth the watch.

As many of you already know, it seems to have been a long
wait for another good Xbox Live! title to be released, and with Brute Force
coming out without any kind of Live! online play, it is with great relief that
Microsoft has seen fit to put the online multiplayer elements into Midtown Madness
3, as the game certainly would not get such a high mark if it did not have Live!
multiplayer support, that is for sure.

The game comes into its own when you get on Xbox Live! There
are loads more game modes to choose from, along with the usual friend lists
and downloadable content such as maps and cars. There are options for quick
matches such as Cruise, Checkpoint, Capture the gold (cops and robbers), Tag,
Hunter and Stayaway. The good thing to note here is that I have yet to have
any connection or ping problems what so ever.

I have had a few problems so far though; each level seems
to take a long time loading, although this is more likely to be because it loads
up the whole of the city you choose to play on. The other is the fact that there
are only two maps currently in the game, Paris and Washington.

Graphics & Sound

Review Quotes

"There
are lots of different styles again for those who don’t want to play through
the main part of the game (although I recommend that you do). In the single
race modes you can choose from Cruise, which is just driving around the
city you choose to race in. Then you have Blitz, which is a race against
time against other drivers, and finally checkpoint, which is the one I seem
to prefer playing."

Graphically it is far better than I expected, it also looks
like it has had a lot more money spent on the game in terms of cut scenes and
audio thanks to it being switched to an Xbox only title, the feel of the game
thanks to that is excellent. There is always a lot going on in Midtown Madness
3, so the main thing to say here is that there has been no slow down in the
games I have played so far, even when there are a number of cars and people
onscreen at once.

There are a few negatives graphically though, there is no
widescreen mode, which is a real disappointment to me, there are also a LOT
of jaggies on the screen when racing around. One plus again though is that the
draw-in distance is far better than Wreckless ever was.

Let me just say that if you enjoyed Midtown Madness 2 on the
PC then you will love Midtown Madness 3, it is more of the same, but with better
graphics, better sounds, improved maps, better cities and the icing on the cake
– Xbox Live! Support. But if you never liked the Midtown Madness series 1 &
2, don't bother, there is nothing here that will make you change your views
on it.

Specs & Package

Overall Score

88%

Version Reviewed

Midtown Madness 3 (PAL)

Release Date

Out Now

In The Box?

1 Midtown Madness 3 DVD-ROM
1 Set Of Instructions

The Good Points

Great control
Lots of fun
Lots of game types
Live! Support
Good Graphics